Martin Ryle

Martin Ryle
Born(1918-09-27)27 September 1918
Brighton, England
Died14 October 1984(1984-10-14) (aged 66)
Cambridge, England
EducationBradfield College
Alma materUniversity of Oxford (BA, DPhil)
Known forAperture synthesis
Radio astronomy
Spouse
Rowena Palmer
(m. 1947)
Awards
Scientific career
FieldsAstronomy
Institutions
Doctoral advisorJ. A. Ratcliffe[1]
Doctoral studentsMalcolm Longair[1][2]
Peter Rentzepis
Jan Högbom[3]
John E. Baldwin

Sir Martin Ryle (27 September 1918 – 14 October 1984) was an English radio astronomer who developed revolutionary radio telescope systems (see e.g. aperture synthesis) and used them for accurate location and imaging of weak radio sources. In 1946 Ryle and Derek Vonberg were the first people to publish interferometric astronomical measurements at radio wavelengths. With improved equipment, Ryle observed the most distant known galaxies in the universe at that time. He was the first Professor of Radio Astronomy in the University of Cambridge and founding director of the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory. He was the twelfth Astronomer Royal from 1972 to 1982.[4] Ryle and Antony Hewish shared the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1974, the first Nobel prize awarded in recognition of astronomical research.[5] In the 1970s, Ryle turned the greater part of his attention from astronomy to social and political issues which he considered to be more urgent.

Education and early life

Martin Ryle was born in Brighton, England, the son of Professor John Alfred Ryle and Miriam (née Scully) Ryle. He was the nephew of Oxford University Professor of Philosophy Gilbert Ryle. After studying at Bradfield College, Ryle studied physics at Christ Church, Oxford. In 1939, Ryle worked with the Telecommunications Research Establishment (TRE) on the design of antennas for airborne radar equipment during World War II. After the war, he received a fellowship at the Cavendish Laboratory.

Career and research

The focus of Ryle's early work in Cambridge was on radio waves from the Sun.[6][7][8][9] His interest quickly shifted to other areas, however, and he decided early on that the Cambridge group should develop new observing techniques. As a result, Ryle was the driving force in the creation and improvement of astronomical interferometry and aperture synthesis, which paved the way for massive upgrades in the quality of radio astronomical data. In 1946 Ryle built the first multi-element astronomical radio interferometer.[10]

Ryle guided the Cambridge radio astronomy group in the production of several important radio source catalogues. One such catalogue, the Third Cambridge Catalogue of Radio Sources (3C) in 1959 helped lead to the discovery of the first quasi-stellar object (quasar).

While serving as university lecturer in physics at Cambridge from 1948 to 1959, Ryle became director of the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory in 1957 and professor of radio astronomy in 1959. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1952,[11] was knighted in 1966 (p 519 of[11]) and succeeded Sir Richard Woolley as Astronomer Royal from 1972 to 1982. Ryle and Antony Hewish shared the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1974, the first Nobel prize awarded in recognition of astronomical research. In 1968 Ryle served as professor of astronomy at Gresham College, London.

Personality

According to numerous reports Ryle was quick-thinking, impatient with those slower than himself and charismatic (pp 502, 508, 510 of[11]). He was also idealistic (p 519 of[11]), a characteristic he shared with his father (p 499 of,[11][12]). In an interview (p271 of[13]) in 1982 he said "At times one feels that one should almost have a car sticker saying 'Stop Science Now' because we're getting cleverer and cleverer, but we do not increase the wisdom to go with it."

He was also intense and volatile (p 327 of[14]), the latter characteristic being associated with his mother (p 499 of,[11] Folder A.20 of[12]). The historian Owen Chadwick described him as "a rare personality, of exceptional sensitivity of mind, fears and anxieties, care and compassion, humour and anger." (Folder A.28 of[12])

Ryle was sometimes considered difficult to work with[citation needed] – he often worked in an office at the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory to avoid disturbances from other members of the Cavendish Laboratory and to avoid getting into heated arguments, as Ryle had a hot temper. Ryle worried that Cambridge would lose its standing in the radio astronomy community as other radio astronomy groups had much better funding, so he encouraged a certain amount of secrecy about his aperture synthesis methods in order to keep an advantage for the Cambridge group. Ryle had heated arguments with Fred Hoyle of the Institute of Astronomy about Hoyle's steady state universe, which restricted collaboration between the Cavendish Radio Astronomy Group and the Institute of Astronomy during the 1960s.[citation needed]

War, peace and energy

Ryle was a new physics graduate and an experienced radio ham in 1939, when the Second World War started. He played an important part in the Allied war effort,[11] working mainly in radar countermeasures. After the war, "He returned to Cambridge with a determination to devote himself to pure science, unalloyed by the taint of war."[11]

In the 1970s, Ryle turned the greater part of his attention from astronomy to social and political issues which he considered to be more urgent. With publications from 1976 and continuing, despite illness[11] until he died in 1984, he pursued a passionate and intensive program on the socially responsible use of science and technology.[15] His main themes were:

  • Warning the world of the horrific dangers of nuclear armaments, notably in his pamphlet Towards the Nuclear Holocaust.[16]
  • Criticism of nuclear power, as in Is there a case for nuclear power?[17]
  • Research and promotion of alternative energy and energy efficiency, as in Short-term Storage and Wind Power Availability.[18]
  • Calling for the responsible use of science and technology. "...we should strive to see how the vast resources now diverted towards the destruction of life are turned instead to the solution of the problems which both rich - but especially the poor - countries of the world now face."[15]

In 1983 Ryle responded to a request from the President of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences for suggestions of topics to be discussed at a meeting on Science and Peace. Ryle's reply was published posthumously in Martin Ryle's Letter.[15] An abridged version appears in New Scientist with the title Martin Ryle's Last Testament.[19] The letter ends with "Our cleverness has grown prodigiously – but not our wisdom."

Honours and awards

Ryle was awarded numerous prizes and honours including:

Personal life

In their early years Ryle and his elder brother received lessons at home in carpentry (p 498 of [11]) and manual skills became important for him throughout his life. This was for relaxation – he built boats to his own designs (p 498 of [11]) – and professionally. In his wartime radar work ([24]), his post-war radio-telescope building (p 510 of [11]) and his late researches into wind energy (p 517 of [11]) he was a hands-on practical engineer as well as a scientist.

Ryle also had a lifelong interest in sailing (p 498 of[11]) and this matched his choice when in the 1970s he turned his research subject from astronomy to wind energy (pp 420–422 of[25])

Another practical skill acquired by Ryle in his youth that later served him well in his professional career was as a radio 'ham'. While still at School (Bradfield College) he built his own transmitter and obtained a Post Office licence to operate it (pp 498–499 of[11]), with the GB-Callsign G3CY.

In 1936 the family moved to a house in Cambridge which became Ryle's home after the war. In 1947 he and Rowena Palmer married, and they lived in this house for rest of his life. They had three children, born in 1949, 1951 and 1952. Ryle died on 14 October 1984, in Cambridge. He was celebrated on a first class stamp issued in 2009 as part of an Eminent Britons set.[26] Lady Rowena Ryle died in 2013.[27]

References

  1. ^ a b Martin Ryle at the Mathematics Genealogy Project
  2. ^ Longair, Malcolm Sim (1967). The evolution of radio galaxies. lib.cam.ac.uk (PhD thesis). University of Cambridge. OCLC 657635513. EThOS uk.bl.ethos.648088.
  3. ^ Högbom, Jan A. (1959). The structure and magnetic field of the solar corona. cam.ac.uk (PhD thesis). University of Cambridge.
  4. ^ About Sir Martin Ryle
  5. ^ Press release about Martin Ryle's Nobel Prize.
  6. ^ Martin Ryle publications indexed by the Scopus bibliographic database. (subscription required)
  7. ^ Obs 104 (1984) 283
  8. ^ QJRAS 26 (1985) 358
  9. ^ The Papers of Martin Ryle have been catalogued by Anna-K Mayer and Tim Powell, NCUACS, in 2009 and are deposited with the Churchill Archives Centre, Cambridge.[1]
  10. ^ Ryle, M.; Vonberg, D. D. (1946). "Solar Radiation on 175 Mc./s". Nature. 158 (4010): 339. Bibcode:1946Natur.158..339R. doi:10.1038/158339b0. S2CID 4097569. – Observations from the first multi-element astronomical radio interferometer
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Graham-Smith, Francis (1986). "Martin Ryle. 27 September 1918 – 14 October 1984". Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society. 32. Royal Society: 496–524. doi:10.1098/rsbm.1986.0016. S2CID 71422161.
  12. ^ a b c The Papers of Sir Martin Ryle at Churchill Archives Centre
  13. ^ Williams R ed The Best of The Science Show. Nelson, 1983.
  14. ^ Kragh, H. Cosmology and Controversy: the historical development of two theories of the universe. Princeton University Press, 1996.
  15. ^ a b c Rowan-Robinson, M. and Rudolf, A. (1985) Martin Ryle's Letter. Menard Press.
  16. ^ Ryle, M. Towards the Nuclear Holocaust. Menard Press, 1981.
  17. ^ Ryle, M (1981). "Is there a case for nuclear power?". Electronics and Power. 28 (7/8): 496–500. doi:10.1049/ep.1982.0267.
  18. ^ Anderson, M. B.; Newton, K.; Ryle, M.; Scott, P. F. (1978). "Short-term Storage and Wind Power Availability". Nature. 275 (5679): 432–434. Bibcode:1978Natur.275..432A. doi:10.1038/275432a0. S2CID 4266229.
  19. ^ Ryle M. (1985) "Martin Ryle's Last Testament". New Scientist 105 (14 February): 36-37.
  20. ^ "Winners of the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society". Royal Astronomical Society. Archived from the original on 25 May 2011. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
  21. ^ "Henry Draper Medal". National Academy of Sciences. Archived from the original on 26 January 2013. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
  22. ^ "Franklin Laureate Database – Albert A. Michelson Medal Laureates". Franklin Institute. Archived from the original on 6 April 2012. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  23. ^ "Past Winners of the Catherine Wolfe Bruce Gold Medal". Astronomical Society of the Pacific. Archived from the original on 6 October 2013. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
  24. ^ Ryle M. (1985) "D-13:some personal memories of 24th–28th May 1944". IEE Proceedings 132 (6 October): 438–440.
  25. ^ Longair, M. Maxwell's Enduring Legacy: a scientific history of the Cavendish laboratory. Cambridge University Press, 2016.
  26. ^ Eminent Britons stamp set
  27. ^ geni.com
  • Martin Ryle on Nobelprize.org Edit this at Wikidata including the Nobel Lecture, 12 December 1974 Radio Telescopes of Large Resolving Power

Read other articles:

Ahmad YakobNama dalam bahasa asli(ms) Ahmad bin Yakob BiografiKelahiran1r Februari 1950 (74 tahun)Tumpat (en)   Timbalan Mursyidul Am Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (ms) 2015 – nilai tidak diketahui ← Haron Din – nilai tidak diketahui →   Menteri Besar of Kelantan (en) 6 Mei 2013 – 12 Agustus 2023 ← Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat – Mohd Nassuruddin Daud (en) →   Pesuruhjaya PAS Kelantan (ms) 2013 ...

 

 

2008 Sheffield City Council election ← 2007 1 May 2008 2010 → 30 of 84 seats to Sheffield City Council43 seats needed for a majority   First party Second party   Party Liberal Democrats Labour Seats won 17 12 Seat change 6 5   Third party Fourth party   Party Green Conservative Seats won 1 0 Seat change 1 1 Map showing the results of the 2008 Sheffield City Council elections. Majority party before election No Overall Control Major...

 

 

Alba Teruel RibesAlba Teruel en 2018InformationsNom de naissance Alba Teruel RibesNaissance 17 août 1996 (27 ans)BenigànimNationalité espagnoleÉquipe actuelle Laboral Kutxa-Fundacion EuskadiÉquipes UCI 2015-2017Lointek2018-2021Movistar Team2022Bizkaia-Durango2023-Laboral Kutxa-Fundacion Euskadimodifier - modifier le code - modifier Wikidata Alba Teruel (née le 17 août 1996 à Benigànim) est une coureuse cycliste espagnole, membre de l'équipe Movistar. Biographie En catégorie ju...

Person who controls access to something For other uses, see Gatekeeper (disambiguation). Look up gatekeeper in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. A Hindu gatekeeper at the Srivaikuntanathan Permual Temple in Tamil Nadu A gatekeeper is a person who controls access to something, for example via a city gate or bouncer, or more abstractly, controls who is granted access to a category or status. Gatekeepers assess who is in or out, in the classic words of management scholar Kurt Lewin.[1] Va...

 

 

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.Find sources: Sutton-in-the-Isle – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (February 2013) (Learn how and when to remove this message) Human settlement in EnglandSuttonSuttonLocation within CambridgeshirePopulation3,952 (2011)[1]OS grid referenceT...

 

 

Freaky! Chanson de Senhit auConcours Eurovision de la chanson 2020 Sortie 2020 Langue Anglais Auteur-compositeur Gianluigi FazioHenrik Steen HansenNanna Bottos Chansons représentant Saint-Marin au Concours Eurovision de la chanson Say Na Na Na(2019)modifier Freaky! Single de Senhit Sortie 9 mars 2020 Durée 3:00 Format Téléchargement numérique Auteur-compositeur Gianluigi FazioHenrik Steen HansenNanna Bottos Label PaniniArtist First modifier Freaky! est une chanson de la chante...

LBX1 المعرفات الأسماء المستعارة LBX1, HPX-6, HPX6, H, homeobox, ladybird homeobox 1, CCHS3 معرفات خارجية الوراثة المندلية البشرية عبر الإنترنت 604255 MGI: MGI:104867 HomoloGene: 4784 GeneCards: 10660 علم الوجود الجيني الوظيفة الجزيئية • ‏GO:0001131، ‏GO:0001151، ‏GO:0001130، ‏GO:0001204 DNA-binding transcription factor activity• sequence-specific DNA binding• ربط دي إن �...

 

 

† Стеллерова корова Муляж стеллеровой коровы в Лондонском музее естествознания Научная классификация Домен:ЭукариотыЦарство:ЖивотныеПодцарство:ЭуметазоиБез ранга:Двусторонне-симметричныеБез ранга:ВторичноротыеТип:ХордовыеПодтип:ПозвоночныеИнфратип:Челюстно�...

 

 

此条目序言章节没有充分总结全文内容要点。 (2019年3月21日)请考虑扩充序言,清晰概述条目所有重點。请在条目的讨论页讨论此问题。 哈萨克斯坦總統哈薩克總統旗現任Қасым-Жомарт Кемелұлы Тоқаев卡瑟姆若马尔特·托卡耶夫自2019年3月20日在任任期7年首任努尔苏丹·纳扎尔巴耶夫设立1990年4月24日(哈薩克蘇維埃社會主義共和國總統) 哈萨克斯坦 哈萨克斯坦政府...

Pesta Olahraga Pantai Asia 20082008 Asian Beach GamesLogo Pesta Olahraga Pantai Asia 2008Tuan rumahDenpasar dan Badung, Bali IndonesiaMotoInspire the WorldJumlah negara41Jumlah atlet1.665 atletJumlah disiplin19 cabang olahragaUpacara pembukaan18 Oktober 2008; 15 tahun lalu (2008-10-18)Upacara penutupan26 Oktober 2008Dibuka olehSusilo Bambang YudhoyonoPresiden Republik IndonesiaDitutup olehJusuf KallaWakil Presiden Republik IndonesiaPenyalaan oborOka SulaksanaTempat utamaSanur Beach ...

 

 

Lalmohan redirects here. For other uses, see Lalmohan (disambiguation). Upazila in Barisal Division, BangladeshLalmohan লালমোহনUpazilaCoordinates: 22°19.3′N 90°44.8′E / 22.3217°N 90.7467°E / 22.3217; 90.7467Country BangladeshDivisionBarisal DivisionDistrictBhola DistrictArea • Total396.24 km2 (152.99 sq mi)Population (2011) • Total283,889 • Density720/km2 (1,900/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+6...

 

 

هذه المقالة بحاجة لصندوق معلومات. فضلًا ساعد في تحسين هذه المقالة بإضافة صندوق معلومات مخصص إليها. هذا الوسيط قد لا يتقبله البعض. رسم لغوستاف كليمت امرأة جالسة مع فخذين منفرجين (بالألمانية: frau bei der Selbstbefriedigung) رسمت عام 1916رابط للوسيط الاستمناء[1][2] أَو العادة السرية[...

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.Find sources: 2018 AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships – Light flyweight – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (January 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this message) Boxing competitions Light flyweight at the 2018 AIBA Women's World Boxing Championship...

 

 

United States historic placeWilliam H. and Sabrina Watson HouseU.S. National Register of Historic Places William H. and Sabrina Watson House, Lapeer, Michigan.Location507 Cedar St., Lapeer, MichiganCoordinates43°03′18″N 83°18′45″W / 43.05500°N 83.31250°W / 43.05500; -83.31250 (William H. and Sabrina Watson House)Arealess than one acreBuilt1878 (1878)Architectural styleQueen Anne, Italian VillaMPSLapeer MRANRHP reference No.850016...

 

 

Irish potato dish ColcannonA bowl of colcannonCourseMain course or side dishPlace of originIrelandServing temperatureHotMain ingredientsMashed potatoes, cabbage  Media: Colcannon Colcannon (Irish: cál ceannann, meaning 'white-headed cabbage') is a traditional Irish dish of mashed potatoes with cabbage. It is a popular dish on Saint Patrick's Day[1] and on the feast day of St. Brigid.[2] Description Colcannon is most commonly made with only four ingredients: potatoes,...

American biologist Hamilton O. SmithSmith in 2012Born (1931-08-23) August 23, 1931 (age 92)New York City[1]Alma materUniversity of California, Berkeley, BAJohns Hopkins School of Medicine, MDKnown forRestriction enzymesAwardsNobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1978Scientific careerFieldsMolecular biology, biochemistry, genomicsInstitutionsWashington University School of Medicine Hamilton Othanel Smith (born August 23, 1931 in New York)[1] is an American mic...

 

 

American basketball player (born 1983) Josh ChildressChildress with the Atlanta Hawks in 2008Personal informationBorn (1983-06-20) June 20, 1983 (age 41)Los Angeles, California, U.S.Listed height6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)Listed weight210 lb (95 kg)Career informationHigh schoolMayfair (Lakewood, California)CollegeStanford (2001–2004)NBA draft2004: 1st round, 6th overall pickSelected by the Atlanta HawksPlaying career2004–2019PositionSmall forward / shooting guardNumbe...

 

 

Antipsychotic medication RisperidoneClinical dataTrade namesRisperdal, Okedi, others[1]AHFS/Drugs.comMonographMedlinePlusa694015License data US DailyMed: Risperidone Pregnancycategory AU: C Routes ofadministrationBy mouth, intramuscular, subcutaneousDrug classAtypical antipsychotic[2]ATC codeN05AX08 (WHO) Legal statusLegal status AU: S4 (Prescription only) BR: Class C1 (Other controlled substances)[4] CA: ℞-only[5] UK:...

Curve from a cone intersecting a plane The black boundaries of the colored regions are conic sections. Not shown is the other half of the hyperbola, which is on the unshown other half of the double cone. Conic sections visualized with torch light This diagram clarifies the different angles of the cutting planes that result in the different properties of the three types of conic section. A conic section, conic or a quadratic curve is a curve obtained from a cone's surface intersecting a plane....

 

 

Recipient of the Victoria Cross For other uses of Thomas Cooke, see Thomas Cooke (disambiguation). Thomas CookeStudio portrait of Thomas CookeBorn(1881-07-05)5 July 1881Kaikōura, New ZealandDied25 July 1916(1916-07-25) (aged 35) †Pozières, FranceAllegianceAustraliaService/branchAustralian Imperial ForceYears of service1915–1916RankPrivateUnit8th BattalionBattles/wars First World War Western Front Battle of the Somme Battle of Pozières † AwardsVictoria Cros...